Uncontrolled Fury
by Auguruj
Summary: A shock-addict specializing on dragons comes to the Dragon Reservation in Romania. Charlie Weasley and his friends are in for it now, but not everything is as it seems. Not a CW/OC ship, intended OC/OC romance, strict rating
1. Chapter 1

"Hey look out! There's another one!" screamed one of the five men who were restraining a relatively small dragon.

It was a female Welsh Green not causing too many problems as of yet. They found her sneaking from the Romanian dragon reservation towards a nearby farm. She was already closer than acceptable when they got an urgent message – an urgent as they called it, so they quickly put together a safe twelve man group that followed her. It seemed like an easy job, twelve professional dragon tamers against one of the tamest species of the dragon kin.

A little while after they apprehended her, another dragon showed up. This time it was a Peruvian Vipertooth female. She enthusiastically joined the fun, trying to get a bite out of them. The moment she set her eyes on humans, she didn't spare the green dragon, whose yell alerted her, a second glance. Vipertooths liked people; they were one of the species that found them quite tasty.

When the second dragon came, the dragon-tamer group was no longer at an advantage. It took at least six trained wizards to overpower a dragon and with two of them on the scene they had just the number.

Now, yet another dragon came.

The third dragon to arrive was an interesting dark-green one. Unlike the Vipertooth, it got settled on a nearby rock, about fifty meters away. It was way too close not to present a danger, yet far enough than to endanger them with its flame.

"Just brilliant! Three are too much!" complained a wizard with long curly brown hair, who just managed to jump out of the Vipertooth's swishing tail's way angrily.

"It's a hybrid! Gods, look at it, it's wonderful!" exclaimed a red-haired wizard with pimples on his tanned face. He was in a group fighting the Welsh green. The dragon was getting a little nervous already.

"I don't know about you, Charlie…hey greenie, look at me – _Conjuctivitus_! Hell - but I think there are more important things to solve now. For example-" wizard standing next to the read-head gasped and only just managed to dodge the unexpected burst of flame that the Green sent his way. She obviously noticed the curse that missed her head by inches. "I'll skin you alive you stupid green-"

"She'll grill you first, Nate," said a wizard from Charlie's other side dryly.

Nate chanced him a glare.

"Thank you very much, Karl." he frowned.

His second curse missed the dragon's mouth by two inches. She growled.

"As I was saying, there are more important things to do," he repeated finally in between two blasts of stupefy curses, which hit the dragon's head above its eyes. The dragon shook her head and sent another blast of flame at him, which he shielded away. "For example how the twelve of us can manage three adult dragons!"

"That hybrid may be ill. It doesn't look aggressive," stated Karl.

He looked ready to curse the green beast, but at the moment she was paying extra attention to poor Nate, trying to make him warmer. He had no chance to hit her eyes or any scale-less part of her, so he just watched the show for a while. It seemed he pissed the green dragon off a bit with those close calls.

"She looks healthy enough… leave me be!... but she's watching us as if we were a wonderful entertainment for the day. Go lay eggs or something! Won't turn that stare away even once. I'm getting goose bumps from her."

"This green is trying to help with that," came Karl's dry comment, as the green sent another fire blast at his colleague.

"You better help me instead," snarled Nate and banished some dirt into her eyes.

She yelped and growled as they started cursing her in their earnest again.

"Wait, she? This is impossible – three females at once!" exclaimed Charlie.

"A Graphorn!" yelled an older wizard from the Vipertooth group.

They were standing in a safe distance from flames, but that meant the angry grey-purple beast would get to them. It never learnt to respect dragons. That was the reason there were so little of them left in the world. Their skin may be impenetrable to spells and fire in the most part, but dragons had more ways of slaughtering their prey.

This Graphorn was approaching them fast, running down the mild hill from the wood.

"I don't like those animals." mumbled Charlie.

"What is it doing here anyway?" whined Nate. "There are three dragons here; we don't need that ugly beast!"

"Ow!" yelped the curly-haired wizard.

This time the Viper tooth tail hit him. It threw him good twenty meters from his group, into the way of the Graphorn.

"Merlin, Matt!" Charlie screamed in sudden anguish. "Look out!"

The curly hairedwizard named Matt looked up in terror at the furious purple beast. He lost his grip on his wand when he landed. It was lying more than ten meters away from him. He had no chance to get it before the beast got to him. Never mind that it would be pretty much hopeless against an animal whose skin was thicker than dragon's.

"The third one's taking off!" yelled Nate from his place next to Charlie. He just blocked the red-head from the dragon's flame, because his eyes were glued to his best friend, who was lying in the beast's way, wandless.

"We're dead." remarked Karl dryly.

"Gods, she's going for Matt!" groaned Charlie.

The dark-green dragon crossed the land between Matt and her rock in a few seconds. She arrived just as the Graphorn was closing in, lowering its horned head at him.

Surprisingly, she growled and struck out with her clawed paw, throwing the monster a great deal further. By the time it managed to get up, she was there. A rather thin bright-blue flame broke forth from her nostrils. In a matter of seconds all that was left from the beast was a little bit of its head and its horns. Those were out of way of the unusually thin fire.

The dragon took the remnants into its mouth satisfactorily and flew back to her rock, shocking everyone, who was watching. Matt was left sitting on the ground open-mouthed and completely unharmed.

After a while, he scrambled to his feet hastily and grabbed his wand. He glanced fearfully at the hybrid dragon. He thought it forgot about him after getting another prey. One glance told him that he was wrong. The dragon was watching his every step, the head of the Graphorn smoking and hissing with heat between her fore paws. She didn't look like taking off anytime soon.

He just joined the now taxed Vipertooth group once more, when the Welsh Green decided she had enough and flew away, back to the reservation mountains. After that, it was only minutes until they managed to subdue the Peruvian Vipertooth, too.

When both dragons left, the group turned to face the dark-green one. She was stretched out on the rock comfortably and was bathing in the sun. Her eyes were closed.

"Do you see what I do?" whispered one of the wizards with awe in his voice.

Dragon hybrids were rare, but his one was unique, one of a kind.

"She has the tail horns like a Horntail does, but they are gold," stated Nate.

"Those golden horns make her a Longhorn, along with her colour." added Matt, still more than white from his near-death experience.

"That ridge is just the right form and height for a Norwegian Ridgeback, apart from its colour." Norwegian ridgeback had a black ridge; this hybrid had a dark-green one.

"The flame is blue as a Swedish Short-Snout has, and equally hot," joined one of the former Vipertooth group, "but it's thin as a Welsh Green's flame," he added.

"Only Ukrainian Iron-Belly has claws that size."

"Her head horns seem a bit shorter than what Longhorn has."

"I think they aren't, Andy. It looks like it, because she is larger than a Longhorn." an older wizard from Vipertooth group frowned thoughtfully. "She could care less, though. With an arsenal like this, she is almost invincible. I think the temperature of her flame is higher than Short-Snout's, too. Graphorns are extremely resistant to fire. Even Short-Snout would need a minute or so to burn it down like this."

The blond short-haired Andy nodded.

"Her wings resemble a bat. Indicates a Hebridean Black. Just dark-green again," noted Karl.

"True enough. What species do we have left?" smirked Charlie, his blue eyes bright with joy once again.

"Well," frowned Karl. "We have signs of Horntail, Longhorn, Ridgeback, Short-Snout, Iron Belly, Hebridean Black and possibly Welsh if we take the width of her flame into account. That's seven."

"Yes," said one of the older. "Missing species are Opaleye, Vipertooth and Chinese Fireball."

"What colour are her eyes?" asked Charlie suddenly. "Would be fun if they were Fireball's red. Do you know? I didn't notice."

"Matt?" a black-haired man, resembling Spanish, asked.

"I don't know, Alejandro, I can't remember. I _was _looking into her eyes and she's been staring at me long enough, but I don't know. I thought a saw red, then I though perhaps green or blue, or yellow… I just don't know."

"Pity. Do you think she has venomous teeth by any chance?" continued Charlie eagerly.

"How do you want to find out?" Alejandro raised his dark eyebrows.

"If she opened her mouth, we would know."

"Yes, but somehow I want her to stay asleep."

"She's not asleep."

Charlie and Alejandro both stopped their conversation and stared at Matt.

"What do you mean? Her breath's calm, she's relaxed, closed eyes. Fore leg turned upwards. Dragons only do that when asleep."

"I don't care," Matt shrugged. "I still have this unpleasant feeling, as if she was watching us. I had the same feeling when she was sitting there during the battle, staring at us."

"But…" Alejandro started to protest.

"He's right," joined the older one from before. "We know that Matt can feel a prolonged stare. This dragon is strange. Hybrids are just as aggressive as pureblood ones. This one didn't attack yet."

"If you don't count the Graphorn," remarked Andy. "That ended quite nicely." He pointed at the horns near the dragon's head.

"This is a typical picture of a sleeping dragon," opposed a brown haired wizard who alerted them to her arrival.

"She's not sleeping, Wins," said Matt firmly, glaring at her.

"I doubt she would fall asleep with twelve people before her," added one of the older tamers.

"We've already established that this dragon doesn't behave like the rest of them. It can be sleeping just as well, Martin." Wins was shaking his head.

"She is a female, Wins, not an it." said Charlie, gazing at her fondly.

Suddenly, the dragon opened her eyes, raised her head and looked at them as they all leaped back in frightened surprise. Matt didn't leap as far as the others, already expecting it, which left him standing closer than his friends. She seemed just as alert as when she threw the Graphorn away.

"There," growled Matt.

She turned her head slightly and stared at him intently.

"Don't look at me like that. Do you have any idea how unpleasant that is?" he complained.

The dragon tilted her head to the side and measured him up and down with her gaze slowly, as if contemplating the amount of meat on that funny little man. Matt shivered. He could practically feel that look _physically_.

"You know what this means, don't you?" said Martin quietly. "She's cunning; when she was trying to persuade us she was sleeping. That means she is intelligent. Be careful, this one will be completely unpredictable."

"Look at her eyes!" exclaimed Charlie happily. "Pupil-less and colourful. That's why you didn't know, Matt, she has all the colours swirling around constantly."

"So she has something from the Antipodean Opaleye, too. Mainly if the colour changes in sync with her mood. Eight-species hybrid as of now."

"Hey, dragon!" Charlie suddenly let out a loud yell, as if she was deaf. She looked at him and raised her head a bit higher. Her eyes turned reddish-green and the colourful sparkles started moving faster.

"Charlie!" barked Martin sharply. Red with Antipodean meant anger. The velocity of swirling meant intensity of emotion.

"I just want her to open her mouth. Would you open that beak of yours for a while?"

Her eyes swirled a full-blown red. Two bright-blue, mushroom shaped clouds of smoke burst from her nostrils suddenly. Charlie's chin fell.

"That is… that is…" he stuttered. "T-that is… that is… that…" his voice failed. Matt couldn't help the laugh that escaped him.

"That is-that is obviously a Chinese Fireball part of her, Charlie. Stop bothering her."

"I think he just amused her. Look, her eyes are green-blue."

"In the presence of people? The number of species she is built of must have gotten to her brain," grumbled Wins.

The dragon hissed and sat up. She glanced at Wins with an angry, fast-swirling glare.

"Shit. She's obviously intelligent as a Kneazle at least. It seems she can understand us." Andy jumped backwards.

"Moreover, she uses that intelligence in comparison with other dragons. They aren't stupid; they just act on their instincts and urges rather than intelligence. Other dragon would have thrown himself at us already. Maybe her genes couldn't hold that much various information and balanced in making her tame, unable to feel uncontrolled fury," hypothesized one of them.

The female dragon looked at them, tense and obviously insulted. She opened her mouth and let go of a loud, melodic roar.

"She's venomous! D'you see those teeth? Those sharp ones! They're greenish, too!" yelled Charlie excitedly.

"The width of flame and yell is Welsh Green for sure."

"So, she has a bit of all the species. Elwin will have kittens."

Dragon closed her mouth, snatched the graphorn's head angrily and took off to the mountains, not sparing the twelve humans another glance.

Matt watched her go with a frown.

"She gives me such a weird feeling. Else than I usually get." he grumbled to himself.

"She's strange enough. Let's go, we were gone too long. The others in the settlement must be worried already."

A/N: So, what do you think? Reviews are more than welcomed!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N This story is being beta-ed by Blue Leah. Thank you!

When they returned to the settlement near the reservation, Emilyn – Martin's wife – ran out to meet them with a frown. She was taking care of cooking at the settlement, along with two other women.

"Don't you know when to return? We expected you three hours ago!" she growled at them angrily. She hated it when the food she prepared was left to get cold. Her face lost its angry expression when she noticed the thoughtful, satisfied or outright happy expressions on their faces.

"What happened?"

"Today was quite funny," replied Karl in his customary dry, unamused voice.

"Why?"

"Matt got almost killed by a Graphorn," he shrugged.

"What?!" Emilyn gasped looking the dragon-handler up and down. He seemed to be all right. "Are you hurt, Matt?"

"No, I'm fine."

"So what happened?"

"We caught that Green female, but the noise she made lured a Peruvian Vipertooth to us. She wanted us, not the Welsh. Then a third dragon came – a hybrid."

"Hybrid?" stammered Emilyn. "What species?"

"All."

Emilyn gaped at them soundlessly.

"I felt the same way, Em," Martin assured her.

"All species?"

"Yes, a Hybrid with capital H," Charlie grinned happily.

"Oh… What about the Graphorn?"

"Matt got hit by the Vipertooth's tail – it threw him in its direction as it was closing in on us. He lost his wand in the air."

Emilyn stared at Matt, wondering how on earth he could survive that. Matt squirmed uncomfortably.

"Stop staring like that, Emilyn, I got enough of it today."

Charlie laughed. "The hybrid saved him, Emilyn."

"What?" she looked at him, confused. "A dragon?"

"Yeah, until then she was just sitting on a rock watching us. One would think we and those two females were performing for her. When Matt got thrown away she took off getting to him in the same time as the ugly beast. She punched it away and burned it. Flame as a Swedish Short-Snout se had."

"She… ignored you?"

"Well, she hasn't attacked us. She returned back to the rock then and when both dragons flew away, she pretended to be asleep."

"WHAT?!"

"Cunning little beast," Charlie smiled.

"Emilyn, why is there such a rush inside?" Martin asked suddenly, watching the commotion in the kitchen through the window. There were four women running around inside, apparently busy.

"I wanted to tell you when you came!" exclaimed Emilyn. "Albus Dumbledore, the Hogwarts Headmaster came, along with Minerva McGonagall, Severus Snape and Pomona Sprout. Elwin invited Albus ages ago, you know they were classmates once. Snape and Sprout are here to gather herbs and potion ingredients. They are visiting for four or five days, we will be having the meals together in the dining room. I expect the living area will be quite busy these days, there's a lot to talk about. You are one hour too late for dinner! We were waiting for you! Now hurry up and get clean and presentable!" she glared at them, hands on her hips.

Half an hour later they were all seated around a big table in the dining room, which was only used on special occasion. The leader of the reservation, an old and partially retired dragon-tamer named Elwin decided that he wouldn't wait till the end of the meal to get a full day report out of the delayed group. He could tell there was something special about their outing the minute he saw the face of one of them.

Elwin was in charge of the reservation, although he was too old to actively participate in handling the dragons. Martin got the privilege of speaking, as he led the group and was the oldest and most experienced dragon-tamer.

The Hogwarts guests were mostly quiet during the tale, simply listening and eating. Severus Snape himself had yet to say anything past the usual introductions in the beginning. After the war with Voldemort he was much calmer and less bad-tempered then before. Three years free of the stress of having two masters have done their good.

His calm façade fell the moment he heard Martin mention the Graphorn. He stared at him as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"That dragon has burnt a Graphorn? Hell! Their horns are extremely difficult to get by. I am after one at least for the past half-year and there is nothing. Leave it to a blasted dragon to reduce their numbers even more than they already are."

"The Graphorn had no business in the reservation to begin with. He must have got there from beyond the border; they were never mentioned to be present in the area. That beast could have us killed in a minute. We couldn't divide our attention between two dragons, watching the third one for any sign of attacking us and looking out to it," remarked Karl.

"She hasn't actually burnt the horns, Mr Snape," added Martin with a mischievous grin aimed at Elwin. "She had the flame width of a Welsh Green, although its colour and heat came from Swedish Short-Snout. She burnt it all save part of its head and horns. Unfortunately, she took it with her when she left."

He leaned against the back of his chair and waited for Elwin to catch up. He told them the species of first and second dragon, but he kept quiet when it came to species of the third. Everyone who was there with him was smirking; they knew he wanted to shock poor Elwin. He was in love with all dragon hybrids, although he managed to see only three of two-species ones.

Elwin gasped when he realized what Martin said.

"It was a hybrid? Of Swedish Short-Snout and Welsh Green? Oh, my God, I never saw such a thing!" he exclaimed in awe. "What colour was it?"

Martin smirked. "Well, it was dark-green actually. The exact colour as a Romanian Longhorn, it even had the golden horns."

Elwin gaped.

"Th-three species?" he stuttered. "He was a three-species hybrid?"

"It was a female, Elwin, and no, it wasn't a three-species one. I think I still haven't described her, have I? Matt, would you take the honour? You met her more closely than us."

"Well," began Matt as he inclined his head to Martin, with an exaggerated air of royalty thanking his subordinates. Charlie let out a snicker. "She had signs – but you must not faint Elwin, we have guests, remember – she had signs of all the species."

Everyone at the table, safe their little group and the Hogwarts visitors, gaped at them in various combinations of shock and disbelief. Elwin looked like he _might_ faint. Then he shook his head.

"Impossible," he muttered.

"I will describe her. She was dark-green and had two golden horns on her head above swirling multi-coloured eyes missing the pupils. Hot, bright-blue flame. Bat-like wings. Long claws that nothing but Iron-Belly could match. She had horns on the end of her tail. A visible ridge on her back. Thin flame and melodic roar. Poisonous teeth. She could let out mushroom-shaped clouds of smoke in a bright-blue colour."

"Bloody hell," whispered someone.

"She was perfect. Just a bit too intelligent and she behaved stranger then other dragons. We are fairly sure she understood everything we said to her. Charlie was the first to piss her off a little, just being who he is. He told her to open that beak of hers, so we could see if she was venomous or not. She released the fire-clouds then."

"That could be expected," stated Snape as he stared at Charlie down his long nose. "Reckless Gryffindor even miles from Hogwarts, are you not, Weasley?"

Charlie blushed, but raised his chin defiantly. "Well, if I had known she would have understood me, I wouldn't say 'beak'. Wins was even better, still."

"What did you tell her, Wins?" Elwin looked at the man in question, still a little dazed.

"That the number of species she was built of must have gotten to her brain. She hissed at me and glared, her eyes swirled red and she sat up. Until then she was lying on the rock. She roared and we saw her poison teeth. Sharp greenish Vipertooth teeth she has."

"You mean that she was lying in your presence?" Elwin was frowning.

"Yes. When the other two dragons flew away, she was faking sleep. She had to lie down for it."

"Excuse me?" Elwin stared at him, most likely questioning his sanity.

"We told you she was intelligent," reminded him Matt. "Her behaviour was almost completely different from a stereotypical dragon. George thought she was faulty – that her genes couldn't handle the information stress and made her unable to feel uncontrolled anger, which made her tame in turn. She looked offended when he said it aloud."

"Curious," mumbled Elwin.

"I wonder what Annick would say if she saw her," said Martin.

Emilyn yelped.

"Annick! I wanted to tell you this as well when you came. She sent an owl today. She'll come tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? She was to have another two weeks off, yet." Martin frowned.

"Well, yes. Apparently she changed her mind."

"Hey, moment, please. Who's this Annick you talk about?" a confused Charlie cut in. "I never heard of anyone by that name."

"She specializes on dragons, too. She's active only two years, though. During Voldemort's time she was in school. After he died, she apprenticed herself to one Master in the field. She was to come here two weeks from now. You wouldn't know her; she has a thing for staying under the radar, against all odds."

"I wonder what she'll say. I still don't know how she manages to find all those hybrids she took photos of already. She saw three two-species hybrids and one three-species already – all in the span of one year and a half! I haven't heard from her for five months, maybe she'll come with a new shot." said Elwin.

"Well, we will see when she comes. Nothing else to do either, with that stray Green taken care of. No new urgents reported?"

"No," Elwin shook his head.

"Well, then. When will Annick come?"

"According to her letter it should be before dinner. She said she was not quite sure, she had some work left to do yet."

"Work during holiday. Yes, that sounds like her all right," laughed Martin. "Another one all crazy about dragons."

"Say, is she sensible as me or insane as him?" Matt pointed at Charlie. They were best friends, and possibly the biggest fans of the winged fire-lizards in the whole reservation.

"I? Insane?" Charlie glared at him.

"Well, who got all over-excited then, when _three_ dragons came this afternoon, while there were only twelve of us? I was at least tactful enough to be appalled. You were all but jumping in joy of seeing a hybrid."

"Well, she was beautiful! If she were aggressive, we would be done for, yeah. Those horns, flame and intelligence makes her the most dangerous dragon ever if you piss her off." Charlie said, grinning widely. Matt rolled his eyes.

"You seem to have a thing for dangerous women. Do you like Emilyn too, when she is yelling at us and threatening with her kitchen utensils? Besides, do you idiot even realize what would have happened if we all looked at her when you told us to? We would be as good as greaves by now." at this point, everyone safe Charlie was laughing.

Charlie shook his head. "We wouldn't."

"Wouldn't we?" Matt said, challenging him to oppose him.

"No," Charlie confirmed his answer and winked at Elwin.

"Why do you think so, you senseless prat?"

"I prefer the term 'sensible man', thank you very much."

Matt snorted and frowned at his red-haired friend. "Prat. Answer."

"It is simple, Matt, really. Such a _sensible_ man like you has to understand it." teased him Charlie. "That Vipertooth was hungry. She would never burn us."

Matt stared at him for a moment. Then, suddenly, he fell out of his chair in laughter.

Snape frowned.

"Why does he find the notion of being eaten by a dragon funny?" he turned to Elwin.

"Oh, never mind these two. We don't try to understand them anymore."

"I see," he nodded, watching the older Weasley cautiously. The redhead was smirking as he helped himself to the best pieces on Matt's plate. Matt was still on the floor, clutching his stomach and gasping for breath.


	3. Chapter 3

A young woman knocked at the front door of the Commons, as they called the building where the reservation people usually ate, socialized and discussed work that needed to be done.

A little while later the door was answered by Emilyn, her face flushed from the stove's heat and her apron covered in fresh oil smudges.

"Yes, can I help you?" she smiled at the girl.

She guessed her to be only a little older than twenty. Her hair was reddish brown and slightly misplaced from the wind, her eyes were a cheerful, dark blue-green colour. She was rather short and very lean. Emilyn liked her immediately.

"Good afternoon, my name is Annick. I sent an owl yesterday."

"Annick! Welcome, I'm pleased to finally meet you. We were expecting you."

She shook her small hand enthusiastically and opened the door further, to let her in.

"Dinner will be ready in an hour, hour and half at most. We will show you to your rooms after that if it's alright with you. Others are in the living area. Will you join them or would you rather rest? There are a couple guest rooms upstairs that are free for use."

"I will go meet everyone. Elwin's there I hope? I have a surprise for him."

"Yes, he is there. We have a visit for the next few days – Headmaster of Hogwarts, Dumbledore, came yesterday along with three of his staff. Will I introduce you?"

"Not necessary, thank you. I want to shock Elwin a little, you see. Look," she showed Emilyn a moving wizard photograph of a huge pearly dragon with long claws and horns on his tail.

Emilyn gasped.

"Three-species hybrid! That's beautiful!"

"Indeed," chuckled Annick. "It is my average shot from holiday based on importance. I wouldn't want to cause poor Elwin a heart attack. Where is the living area?"

"That open door at the end of this corridor. All the noise is coming from there."

"Thanks. See you later."

Annick walked over to the opened door silently and peeked inside. No one noticed her, their attention was either on a discussion or a game. She smirked when she saw Elwin's white head. He was sitting with his back to her, talking to another white-headed wizard. Three other people at the table were probably the school staff Emilyn was talking about.

Annick entered the room slowly and inconspicuously and started sneaking towards Elwin. Nobody noticed her, except for a wizard with slightly longer curly brown hair who just stepped away from the window and his eyes fell straight at her.

She glanced at him quickly and drew one finger across her smirking lips – a sign to keep quiet.

As soon as she was directly behind Elwin, she sticked the photograph right before his nose. The old man gasped, snatched the picture from the hand holding it and jumped to his feet.

"Gods above!" he exclaimed, staring at the picture. Then he realised the picture came to him from some hand, and he whirled around to look at the person.

"Annick!" he practically squealed with a wide smile on his face and hugged her. "Long time no see, little girl. How are you?"

"Quite well, thanks. Do you like my holiday shot?" she inclined her head towards the picture.

"Of course! Beautiful specimen, pity it's not a live experience. You absolutely have to tell me how you manage to find them all." he stared at the photograph with a love-struck expression.

It took him a while to register the room's silence. Everyone managed to notice Elwin if they did not notice Annick and heard their little talk.

He turned to the others and stated loudly: "Here we have a three-species hybrid, ladies and gentlemen! The Antipodean Opaleye, Ukrainian Iron-Belly and Hungarian Horntail."

The first wizards who made it to Elwin after that statement were the curly-haired one who noticed her earlier and a red-headed man with pimples and bright-blue eyes.

"Oh my God, what a beautiful little dragon!" gushed the red-head. The curly haired snorted. "Yeah, little. I guess you would be complimenting it halfway into its stomach, too."

He then looked at the smirking little woman in front of him. She wore a satisfied expression on her face as she looked at the ruckus she caused. He outstretched his hand toward her.

"Hello, I am Matt Rovens."

She smiled and her eyes got a sudden gleam to them when she looked at him closely. She shook his hand. "Annick."

"Is that a first name or a surname?" the red-haired wizard inquired, as he looked up from the photograph. "Oh, sorry, I'm Charlie Weasley." he shook her hand.

"Nice to meet you. It is both actually, a mixed nickname."

The next five minutes were spent in introductions. When she ceased to be the center of attention, she turned to Matt who was still standing beside her, and stepped closer to him.

"Want to see something?"

He looked at her questioningly and nodded. She pulled out another picture and showed him. Matt could only stare. It was a picture of five-species hybrid.

"Do you think it's safe enough to show to Elwin? With his age…" she joked. Then she grew cheerfully serious again. "This is the most valuable one I managed to take a picture of. I have one other picture – hybrid of a Welsh Green and Hebridean Black, but that is all. Quite enough for a week I think."

"It's wonderful!" blurted Matt. The picture was marvellous.

Another five minutes later the excited dragon-tamers were all seated in their chairs and armchairs again, having snatched the pictures from Elwin to pass along their group a few more times. Annick got seated with the now zoned off Elwin and his friends.

"Elwin, wake up," called Albus Dumbledore amusedly. His friend was apparently in some other world, probably studying the hybrids whose pictures he saw.

"I am here, but…" Elwin said, distracted. "How is it that you always find so many of them, Annick? I was searching the world for almost sixty years and three hybrids are all I found."

"I have my ways."

"Are you ever going to tell me?" he was scolding her now, in a teasing grandfatherly act.

"Well, yes. I just need a satisfactory shocking ground," she smirked.

Elwin shook his head, letting go of a huge, long-suffering sigh. This was a source of jokes from the first time he met her. She just _had_ to shock people.

"Shocking ground?" inquired Dumbledore politely. He smiled at the lively young woman. "You seem to have a thing for shocks, don't you?"

"You see!" exclaimed Elwin, pointing at Albus. "Even he knows it already and this is the very first time you met. Why not be unpredictable for _once_ and tell me straight? You might not have noticed, with my charming young appearance, but I do have my years. Shocking me isn't the best thing to do to me. Do you want to kill me?"

"Dear Elwin, we know each other for a little over two years and even with you knowing of my shock-addiction I never was predictable. Trust me; you would never guess that way of mine." Annick stuck her nose high into the air.

"Why are you such a shock-addict, anyway?" complained Elwin desperately.

"Well, the beginning dates back a few years." Annick said, her eyes strangely intense for a change. Elwin opened his mouth, but then he closed it again, with an interesting expression on his face.

"When you do something a little bit too often, it becomes your second nature," Annick's voice was cheerfully mischievous again. "Like the caution and watching for Mr Snape here, or patience and tenderness for you, Ms Sprout."

Pomona Sprout smiled and nodded. Working with herbs and plants required those two traits. Snape watched Annick carefully.

"What would you say is a second nature to me?" asked Dumbledore with an entertained twinkle in his eyes.

"Well, not that I know you much, but I heard of you knowing everything there is to know. So I would guess it is knowing. Closely followed by that maddening twinkle in your eyes. You surely have it because you know it's driving us insane and you don't have many things to amuse yourself with. Being the greatest wizard in History besides Merlin himself must be bloody annoying. Why not annoy us, too?"

Snape snorted and turned to Dumbledore. "See? Everyone knows why you're doing that." he turned back to Annick, away from chuckling Dumbledore.

"You are quite perceptible," he told her. "You would have done a great job at spying on the Death-Eaters."

"No, I wouldn't. I would kill them off before finding out anything interesting." Annick shook her head.

She got surprised wondering looks from everyone in their little group, apart from Elwin.

"I don't like the Death-Eaters. Though I quite like you, Mr Snape. Those pathetic guys never knew what hit them when they found out about your true loyalty. Quite an adept for a shock-career I would say." she said casually and satisfactorily. Then she glanced at Elwin. He was smirking, completely unsuspecting.

"I will show you that three-species hybrid of mine tomorrow if you are up to some terrain work, Elwin. She nests near the waterfalls at the northern boundary of the reservation."

Elwin's eyes tried to pop out of his head. "She… You… Here? I thought you were on holiday!" he exclaimed.

"I was. One week. Here," she gleamed at him. "Where did you think I found those hybrids? You have all the dragon species here, they live here and are studied. Bigger possibility to find consequences of off-line mating."

"Wonderful!" Elwin squealed happily.

"You will have your hands full with this one, Elwin. She'll shock you all to death and back." chuckled Albus. "Annick, you have told us the second nature of me, Mrs Sprout and Mr Snape. Just for record, what do you think is the second nature for Minerva here?" he pointed at the stern-looking witch.

Annick looked at her and tipped her head in thought. She frowned a little.

"Well, this is a bit confusing. You are quite hard to read. You remind me of a cat, though, it has the same mysterious look to it as I see in you."

After that comment Snape snorted and Dumbledore chuckled. Minerva McGonagall looked surprised.

"Well, Annick, you sure are talented," chuckled the Hogwarts Headmaster.

Annick frowned.

"I am an animagus, Annick. My form is a cat," said the Professor in question.

Annick's eyebrows raised and she laughed. "If this isn't funny… Lucky guess I think. Ms Sprout, Mr Snape, could you perhaps show me your list of herbs you would like to find here? I was out there for quite a long time, I might help you a bit."

They went over the lists of herbs and ingredients. Eventually, Annick nodded.

"All right, I will get you some of them tomorrow. I know where to find at least one half of those things in the reservation mountains. Even your rock gillyflower and green liliaceous dandelion, Mr Snape."

Snape nodded.

"Thank you, that will help a lot. Thought the gillyflower is going to have to lay unused for a while. I cannot use it until I have a horn of a Graphorn."

"They are possible to get."

"Yes, but there is nothing on the market for the last six months. I just heard a dragon burned a Graphorn down yesterday and took its head. Pity. Those beasts are difficult enough to get, even without them being transformed into piles of ash."

Annick's eyes flashed cheerfully. "Indeed. That hide of theirs is a very effective protection."

"One would think I'll have the possibility to further my research without a madman I have to pretend to respect. But no, one bloody animal just _has_ to stop me," he complained grumpily.

"_Do_ you respect anyone, now that you are free of it all?" inquired Annick carefully.

"Well, yes. You have to respect someone, when you fought in the war side-by-side. I know most of the people I respect."

This got Annick confused. What could he mean by that?

"You know _most_ of the people you respect?" she frowned. "How can you respect someone you don't know?"

"Sometimes actions speak louder than words. You respect me for my place in the war and you don't know me, do you?"

"Well, yes. But I am not an ex-spy who spent most of his life in danger and caution. Who could a person like you possibly respect this way?" she shook her head.

"A daughter of Marlen and Artur Kinnon."

Annick seemed to lose her ability to speak and she didn't look any more understanding.

"But…" she said after a while. "If I remember correctly, they died four years ago. Their daughter was the only one who was not found dead, and she disappeared. I don't understand." she shrugged helplessly.

"That's just it. She wasn't killed that night and disappeared. The Dark Lord had sent four of his stronger Death-Eaters to take care of them because they opposed him and Marlen was a muggleborn. He wanted the whole family dead. Marlen, Artur and their son died, but the Death-Eaters never left the house, too. They were found in the lounge of the house, close to their victims. They were bitten by something poisonous and the venom killed them almost instantly. When the Dark Lord found out, he ordered us to find their daughter and kill her. We got a message that she was found two times, but the Death-Eaters who attacked her were found dead shortly after sending the message. They fallen victims to a poisonous bite and the daughter disappeared again. It was driving the Dark Lord crazy." he chuckled. "I am sure it was her who killed them, even if there is nothing to prove it. I don't know if she used some kind of a pet, but it _was_ her. All the Death-Eaters who were after her family and then her were intelligent and talented wizards, hard to overpower. Yet one witch managed to kill them, probably quite easily I might add, and she's still somewhere out there. No one knows where she is, or if she's even alive. If someone knows, he keeps quiet. Such a thing certainly _is_ worth the respect."

Annick stared at him attentively for a little while longer, and then she smiled at him.

"Well, that was very illuminative answer. Thank you. Don't you accidentally know the girl's name?"

"I think it was Anna, but I am not sure."

Annick nodded. "Very well, Mr Snape. My full name is Anna Isabella Crista Kinnon."

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A/N A little bit of a cliffie, but if it'll make someone review that's good for me. Maybe I'm paranoid, but with 0 reviews total for this story I feel a little unappreciated. Is it that bad people?


	4. Chapter 4

A/N Thanks to the reader **BlackberriesInMoonlight**, you are the first person who reviewed this story! Thank you! Review again if you like, I love hearing opinions on my work. As for the updates, I´m sorry I may a little slow. I´ve to translate the chapter into English, then to type it, then to send it to my Beta and just when she get it back to me I can finally update. I´ll try to quicken it up a bit, but in two weeks my school is starting again, so I might not manage after all. But don´t worry, this story´s going to be finished.

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She looked at him innocently, while his eyes widened in shock and his jaw fell.

"Annick," Elwin said suddenly, in a quiet, acute voice. "Are you sure it was a good idea to reveal yourself like this?"

"It's four of them. They look like sensible people to me; I believe they will not spread the word. Not to mention there are only a few Death-Eaters still on the loose. If they try to kill me again, they will follow the rest of them. I don't take kindly to have someone attempting to take my life."

"I…well…hell," stuttered an astonished Snape, who just found his voice again.

Dumbledore laughed.

"Well, congratulations are in order, Annick. Even I cannot bring him into a state like this. But again, you are the shock-expert here."

"I don't compliment people if they can hear it," Snape mumbled. His cheeks seemed a bit redder than before, out of shock or maybe embarrassment.

"I can believe that, but you can still play it to your advantage yet," said Annick calmly.

He looked at her mischievous face.

"How did you kill them all?"

She smiled. "Well, I think I will never get a better ground to take off from. If that man if as perceptible as I think he is, it will turn out awfully funny," she smirked.

"Annick? Care to explain that statement?" asked Elwin carefully.

She grinned and her eyes twinkled; it was the very face he remembered seeing before a major shock.

"Your dear Matt is in for the shock of his life. As well as eleven others. Watch."

She turned her head to the group of dragon-tamers who were sitting across from them. They were discussing hybrids and didn't pay them any attention. She stared directly at Matt.

For a while nothing happened. Then she got what she hoped for.

Matt stopped listening to the conversation and raised his head a little, as if trying to listen to a voice he was hearing. Suddenly his eyes widened, he jumped straight to his feet, and whirled around. When his eyes met hers, he blanched.

"Annick!" he yelped, astonished.

All the conversation stopped the moment he jumped from his seat. Now all that was heard in the room was absolute silence, interrupted only with Matt's erratic breathing.

Annick gave him a small innocent smile and tipped her head to the side, looking him up and down, in the same way as the female dragon the day before. His face lost all remaining colour and he could easily pass for dead if not standing.

Annick sent him an armchair from across the room; it came to a halt behind his feet in the very same moment as his knees gave in. He fell straight into it.

"You are – You're an animagus?" he breathed faintly.

The smile on her face was almost tender when she stood up and made her way to him slowly, maintaining their eye contact. He seemed unable to avert his gaze.

"Yes, Matt. I'm sorry for the shock I gave you, but I knew you would sense it," she said softly.

"Erm, Annick? What's up?" asked Martin from behind Matt's armchair uncertainly.

"I'm sorry I'll probably disappoint you, but the hybrid you saw yesterday was not a real dragon. It was me."

They group stared at her open-mouthed. She smirked, her demeanour changing from soothing and tender to her usual smirking self.

"I became an animagus when I was eighteen. It turned out I was to become a dragon, but neither I nor my magic could determine the species. As a result, I have something from all the species. That's also the reason I'm so lucky when searching for hybrids, Elwin," she turned to look at him, "hybrids are shyer than pureblood dragons. They hide from people while they can. They're quite perceptible too, so once they sense they were not successful in hiding, they are just as aggressive and wild as the pure-blooded ones. That's why we never knew they were hiding from us. They sensed us before we realized what they were doing. In my dragon form, I can approach them easier; they are not hiding from other dragons. If the dragon they come across isn't aggressive, they won't attack it. The answer for you, Mr Snape, is that I am poisonous." she met his eyes for a moment, and then she turned back to the tamer group she met the day before.

"That's why I didn't attack you when I came. That's why I killed that Graphorn and that's why I seemed intelligent to you. I like playing games and shocking. I hope you are not disappointed." Her voice was a little sarcastic as she remembered their talk of her being weird and damaged.

"No. It's a pity the hybrid wasn't real, but we can get valuable information straight from you when you transform. At least now we know there was nothing wrong with the animal. What are your recognizing signs?" Martin asked.

"That's the catch. I don't have any, if you don't count the fact that I am a complex hybrid that was never seen before and my behaviour is human. Although I can pull off the true dragon behaviour easily."

"This is fascinating," sounded the voice of Professor McGonagall from behind her. "I never heard of anyone transforming into a magical animal. Even less if he doesn't have any sign to tell him apart from the real animal."

"Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I wanted to work with dragon when I was learning to transform. I wished to be able to get closer to them and get to know them. Maybe the magic behind the transformation caught up on it made it happen," Annick replied thoughtfully a smiled at her.

"So, is it OK with you guys?" she turned to the dragon-tamers once again.

"Yea!" answered an excited chorus of voices. They were already looking forward to all the photos they would be able to make and the hybrids they would be able to see with her help.

"You saved Matt! Who would keep telling me I am insane if you didn't save him? I would die from boredom soon!" Charlie added with a wide grin.

"Oh, yes, you. Listen, _Charlie_, if you tell me one more time to open the beak of mine, whatever form I am in, I will slap you. Even better if it is my dragon form."

Matt sniggered along with the others.

"Oh, yes," the redhead blushed. "Sorry about that."

"That reminds me," she looked straight at George, the one who said that bit about genes. Her eyes took on that strange intense quality again. "I assure you I am capable of 'uncontrolled fury', but if you don't want to experience it first hand, you will never say it to me again."

George looked a little put off by that stare. "Uh, OK, sorry. I thought you were a real dragon though. It wasn't normal dragon behaviour."

"Hence why I flew away rather than show the real dragon behaviour to you," nodded Annick and smirked with ease, her posture relaxed again.

Matt got up from his chair and gazed into her eyes searchingly. After a while he gave up whatever it was he was doing.

"Thank you," he said.

"You're welcome. Did you _know_ I was no dragon? I thought you were looking at me quite suspiciously."

"I can't say I knew you were not a dragon. I only knew that you and your stare gave me such a weird feeling that I never felt with another animal or human before. That's why I recognized you now. When you started staring at me, I felt it again. Even if it didn't happen only yesterday I would recognize it."

Annick was looking at him intently. After a few seconds, he squirmed.

"Well, obviously it doesn't matter if I'm looking back at you or not."

She laughed quietly and stopped staring.

"You are a very interesting man Matt Rovens," she stated slowly and clearly, carefully pronunciating every word, as if tasting it.

"Dinner's ready! Get to the dining room before its cold!" Emilyn yelled an order across the corridor.

Everyone was starving already, so they all got up and obliged Emilyn happily.

When Elwin's group halted by her to let her join them on their way to kitchen, she turned to Professor Snape. She opened the pack that she only just put down from her back. Some things couldn't be shrunken magically and was where she kept it all, along with her shrunken luggage.

"Mr Snape. I assume this day turned out to be quite a success for you, didn't it?"

"Yes. I wondered for years what could attack and kill them so cleanly."

"See," she grinned a sweet, innocent smile, pulled out two horns from her pack and offered them to him.

"Now it's an outright happy day, what do you say?"

Snape took hold of the horn and looked them over disbelievingly.

"Graphorn," he gasped in wonder, and raised his head to look at her.

"Indeed. Unless I am very much mistaken, the poor murdering thing didn't survive it yesterday. Take as a reward for you help in killing the bastard who had my family killed. I am very grateful."

"You are just giving it to me? Do you realize how much they cost?"

"After six months of no horn on market? Sure I know. I acquired them. They are mine, and I can do whatever I want with them. I am giving them to you. You better take them, who know what other chance you'd get."

"Thank you very much," he said quietly, his eyes boring into her intently. She only smiled and nodded.

"Well, the dinner is calling us; we should get there before those overgrown babies eat it all."

In the corridor Elwin turned to her one more time.

"Erm, Annick," he started quietly. "while talking about that uncontrolled fury…?"

He trailed off, leaving her to catch up.

She shook her head immediately. "No."

"Oh," Elwin nodded, relieved. "That's great."

"If you think so… it just means they haven't succeeded yet if you ask me. I don't think they gave up. Too dull for that."

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A/N Will anyone review? Now that´s a question.


	5. Chapter 5

The following day Elwin didn't leave Annick alone until she sat down at the table and wrote everything she could remember from her vacation. He wanted every piece of information about the hybrids down on the parchment, any hybrid she saw and the environment they lived in, what height it was, what their behaviour was, how they looked like. It was even worse because nobody came by to save her; they rather made up more questions she had to answer.

If some of them didn't decide to show Annick where she lived at the moment, Elwin would probably hold her there until midnight. Fortunately Charlie Weasley peeped into the room just when she stopped writing. After the simple question of if she were done because they were about to take off, she leapt to her feet. Elwin reached out for the parchment.

"So you continue later, Annick?" he asked.

Annick gave him an indignant look.

"Look, Elwin, I've written enough to make half a book. How about leaving me alone? As if you didn't know that hybrids have no special needs as far as their habitat is concerned. Everything you need is there," she pointed at the parchment in his hands. "If you think of some new question I'll answer it when I return, but don't expect me to just write and talk in between running after a couple of dragons. Just wait until I take you to that Antipodean hybrid."

Elwin's gaze moved to the picture on the wall dreamily.

"A three species hybrid… It'll be an amazing look."

"Yeah," mumbled Annick, sneaking out of the room before Elwin came back form his dream world.

"You shouldn't have let him take a run. He's like my mother when she's going to scold us. Give her time and she'll make herself hoarse," Charlie grinned.

Outside everyone was ready to go, just waiting on Simon, who ran off to get his camera. Apart from the outings where there was a possible fight he carried it everywhere.

"Where are we going?"

"Well, we'll show you the most interesting shops and houses along the way, but we're going to the lake. There's one just out of the reservation. Professors Snape and Sprout were there yesterday morning to collect some plants and water insect. We usually go there when we've nothing else to do and we're too lazy to go track down some dragonet."

"Dragonet," mumbled Annick amusingly.

"Yes, last time we came across one just a meter long," said Matt calmly from before her. She looked at him questioningly.

"His mother almost killed us, but we were able to get a close look. It was a just-hatched Romanian Longhorn. We were fortunate the mother didn't smell us before we saw it."

"Oh," she finally got his meaning. "Longhorn nestling could be rather pretty. I once saw a week old Opaleye," she shivered.

"Opaleye's pretty."

"Not the little ones. It seems those runts have see-through scales until two or three weeks of age, only then it turns the typical pearly colour. It was horrible. You wouldn't want to see the dark shapes that are its intestines or its bones. Gross."

Charlie grinned.

"When Elwin finds out, he'll probably send you to find such a cub and describe it in detail,"

"I'll kill him before he manages. I don't want to see something like that ever again. Even Thestrals are beauties when compared to Opaleye cubs."

"When do you want to see that Antipodean hybrid?" Alejandro joined the conversation from the front of the group.

"Not sure. As early as possible preferably, I want Elwin off my back. I thought I wouldn't have to write it all if it's a part of vacation. As if. I shouldn't have written anything. He's like a leach smelling the blood. I'll have to shock him good to make him lay off."

"Why do you hate people paying attention to you?" asked Matt casually.

"Attention's dangerous," Annick's eyes widened when she let go of the answer without a single thought.

"Paranoid much?" Charlie raised his eyebrows.

Annick was at a loss. She didn't know what to say. In the end she just grinned.

"Yeah, maybe. Being close to dragons will teach you I reckon," she shrugged.

She didn't see Matt's guarded look when he heard the unwished slip.

"Well it seems you're just another person who hates the parchment work, aren't you? There's quite a bit of us here, it's driving Elwin crazy." Charlie grinned again.

Annick snickered when she imagined Elwin trying to persuade the ten of them to write something down.

They walked down the main road in the settlement, around various shops and houses. The lake surface was barely visible a couple hundred meters ahead. Mostly they walked, looking forward to water, only glancing at the other when talking.

Annick could care less for the water surface, she watched the back-profile of Matt's face. He was walking before her. Charlie glanced at her.

"Poor old man, having to rely on written messages and our words. All twelve of us who met the Graphorn the other day don't care about the parchment work at all. When we're on boring trips Elwin's ready to eat all his nails a hair, we're unwilling to describe it even once. The Graphorn outing made him happy, we weren't against repeating ourselves."

Matt finally turned his head to look at Annick when she stared at him stubbornly for a couple of seconds. She wasn't in the settlement for long, but she was driving him insane already. Every little while he felt the blue-green eyes of the newest staff addition on him. Usually she grinned at him cheerfully when he returned her look. Obviously his ability was highly entertaining to her. Now, he just kept staring back at her with a frown, trying to make her look away first. She just grinned at him.

"Really," said Charlie. "Finding that kind of Antipodean baby could be fine. We should look for some females or eggs."

Annick decided to break her staring contest with Matt in favour of glaring at Charlie. They were almost at the shore.

"Don't count me in."

"Aww, Annick, it couldn't have been that bad! A cub of one of the prettiest species. It wouldn't kill you once more, would it?"

"It could. You won't get me to look at something like that. Any other kind of dragon or dragonet, but this."

"We should document it, though," remarked Simon, playing with his something on his camera.

His words got him an amused look from Matt.

"It's obvious you're not from our closed group, Simon. You always have to 'document' something, most of the time meaning to take a photo. What are you doing with all the pictures?"

"I keep the best. It's not like I'm running out of film or anything like with the Muggle ones and this one's really good. If I move this lever and hold the trigger longer, the picture will show everything that happened in that time."

"Hmm, is it something like the Muggle camera on parchment then?" Asked Annick, glancing at the device.

"Exactly!" Simon was positively gleaming. "I bought it the minute it was out on the market. Normal pictures show just a moment, sometimes interspersed with stronger feelings the object feels. If the person run but really wants to lie down, the picture shows it running and lying in turns. That's quite good, too," he admitted thoughtfully. "But sometimes this function is all the situation calls for."

"Does it have the original function too or is it just the magical counterpart of the Muggle thing?"

"No, the camera thing works just when the lever's here. If the lever's in its normal place, it works like any other magical camera," explained Simon happily.

"Oh. That's a brilliant thing then," Annick smiled a little.

She knew exactly what she would do with a thing like that. She chanced a quick glance at Matt, but averted her eyes quickly. She wanted him to remain nicely unsuspecting.

When they arrived at the lake finally, everybody ran off in different directions, whether for work, play or rest. Matt walked over to the near lake curve, where lived a colony of rainbow froglets.

Annick's eyes sparkled. That man could choose a perfect place for her plan, that was sure.

"Hey, Simon, what about trying out your new function?" she asked Simon quietly. He was standing right next to her, looking around for possible shots.

"Great, what?" she turned to her immediately.

"I'll change into a dragon. Hold the trigger then and release it whenever you want. I'll be over there, near Matt," she tilted her head in his direction. Simon grinned.

"Cool! I'll see a hybrid! Everybody was completely mad that day."

Annick ran quietly further from the lake so that she could close in on Matt without him noticing. She stopped about six meters away from him and looked over at Simon. He had the camera ready.

Matt was sitting on his heels at the shore and watched the froglets intently. He used to do so every time he was at the lake, their social behaviour was interesting to say the least. He stood up and moved a little further, to get a better look at the squad of violet tree-frogs.

Annick transformed and turned her head lazily toward Matt. She stared at him so often; he was bound to expect a human when he returned the look.

After five seconds of intent staring Matt turn his head upwards to the sky, with an expression saying: "Why me?"

Then he turned his head left, to Annick, with his typical long-suffering expression.

When he saw the huge dark-green dragon with golden horns staring at him, his eyes grew wide and he winced violently. He staggered, almost falling over, before he managed to regain footing again.

Annick's eyes glowed a bright blue out of sheer joy before returning to their satisfied green-blue. Pure blue colour meant something equal to laugh. She doubted anyone ever saw such a colour in the real Opaleye eyes.

Matt was still staring at her, although his surprise gave way to amused head-shaking. It didn't take long to realize he had fallen victim to another of her so called pranks.

On the edge of her sight Annick noticed Simon lowering the camera. She changed back and walked over to Matt.

"Hi, Matt! I thought I'd stop by for a minute."

"Of course. Simon's camera was just an accident, right?"

"Naturally." Annick nodded seriously, eyes dancing. "Although I'll make sure to ask for a copy of that picture. Who'd say he'd have the camera turned to the right place in the right time?"

"Such a good luck," Matt agreed dryly, looking at the violet tree-frogs again.

"Do you want to go swimming?" asked Annick innocently, stepping closer to him.

Matt gave her a confused frown.

"What?"

One look at her smile and eyes was all he needed to leap away from her, hands raised.

"Annick!" he cried out.

Annick started laughing.

"You're so funny!"

Matt tried frowning for a while, but then he just gave up and smiled at her.

"Yeah. You want to throw me into a lake full of frogs, yet I am funny."

"What?" sounded a cheerful voice next to them. "You wanted to throw Matt amidst the frogs?"

"No, I just wanted to help him out a bit. He was watching them so intently, I thought he wanted to get to know them better. You know, to have a closer relationship," she explained innocently, examining her nails.

Charlie laughed and Matt sighed. "You two and your antics. You'll drive me crazy someday."

"I've no idea what you are talking about," Annick strode away to a couple of trees whose branches reached a way out over the lake surface.

They stayed there for a few hours. Everybody finished whatever work they might have there and gravitated to one side of the lake, where they settled down to talk before heading back home. Annick was currently outstretched on a lower branch of a tree close to Matt and Simon. She would most likely stay there if she were not grabbed by hand and pulled down quickly.

"Hey!" she squealed alarmingly.

The others turned around just to see her hit the ground with a muffled thump.

"Why Annick, I thought only rotten pears fall from the trees," carped at her Charlie, standing above her with a satisfied grin on his face.

Annick looked up him.

"I wouldn't go for a repeat performance if I were you, Charlie. I am the shocker here." she frowned, her expression one of faked hurt.

"You'll get over it eventually," he waved at her and moved over to join Matt on the ground.

Scrambling to her feet quickly, Annick transformed for the second time that day. She crept up on Charlie, recalled a couple of anger-inducing memories and growled darkly.

Charlie whipped round when he heard the growling. His eyes fell on huge jaws full of sharp fangs and the red eyes boring into him. The monster let go an ear-splitting, weirdly melodious screech.

He recoiled in terror, shrieked a very high, girlish tone and tried to turn and run at the same time. His legs messed up and he fell over just a meter away from those fangs.

When he looked up at the beast again, it was sitting on its rear paws, having somehow turned its forepaw so that it looked like she was examining her claws casually, just like Annick did earlier that day. She glanced at him quickly. He stared at her, stunned.

"Annick?" he ventured weakly. "Don't do this to me."

The dragon's eyes swirled green-blue and she stood up. She joined the group of dragon-tamers, choosing to sit right next to Matt, still in her dragon form. She settled down and set to stare at Matt. Apparently that was something she ought to do, seeing as everybody else staring at her. Even Charlie joined the club.

"Annick, stop it," Matt growled at her when his feeling became too disconcerting.

She reminded herself of her family and the last moments before she left home. She never did it happily, but it wasn't like they could see the emotion doing wonders to her cheerful face. Her dragon eyes changed to bleary grey with almost no movement. She lowered her eyes to the ground and opened her mouth for a weak and unhappy whimper.

"Well, no one would mistake you for a dragon now, Annick," remarked one of the tamers sitting opposite then with a grin.

The others were enjoying the fun. A depressed acting dragon was not a common sight.

Annick glanced at Matt. Ha was still frowning, though his eyebrows were twitching slightly. He looked slightly uncomfortable, as if he realized she had to make herself feel the emotions she wanted her eyes to display. She lowered her head again and whimpered again, more pitifully than before. The next whimper sounded more like a tortured wail than whimper ad Matt winced.

"All right, all right, stare however long you want!" he blurted quickly.

The dragon turned her head with bright blue-green eyes and licked him. A dragon tongue is quite big; it went from his chin to his forehead in one sweep.

"Annick!" Matt wailed desperately and started to wipe himself off with disgust.

Everybody else laughed their heads off.

Annick just looked at him amusedly. Slowly, a violet shade sneaked into her blue-green eyes.

When Matt noticed that, he frowned in confusion. Violet was a completely foreign colour when speaking of Antipodean Opaleye. Grey was foreign too, but it must have meant unhappiness. He had no idea what violet could mean.

"Erm, Annick? How are you feeling? Your eyes are almost violet."

The dragon blinked and her eyes resumed their green colour, which was a relatively calm and positive state of mind. Simon raised his camera.

"It won't bother you if I document you a little, will it Annick?"

Dragoness leapt to her feet, backing from the group until she had enough place for herself. Then she turned in a way that made her spine ridge clearly visible to Simon, bend her tail forwards so they could see the horns and spread her wings just enough to show off their batty appearance. She raised her head conceitedly and looked down her nose at Simon. Charlie beamed at her cheerfully.

Karl took a single look at her, then he turned to Matt.

"It won't be Charlie who'll drive you crazy in the end. You'll have your hands full with this one," he remarked dryly.

Matt only sighed.

"Do a red look Annick, I'll make a detail of your face," called Simon happily.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N Don´t kill me for the lenght of this chapter (or lack of it) :), things are quite a bit hectic lately. And... don´t you want to review? :))

"Hey, guys," said Annick when they approached the common building.

"What?"

"What about you running in and calling Elwin out? He can even bring a paper along if he wants."

Charlie snickered. "You want him to document you?"

"Besides getting a stroke you mean," mumbled Matt under his breath.

"Something like that," laughed Annick. "I'm actually astonished he didn't force me to transform the minute the found out. I'll just wait for you here, as well-trained as ever, OK?"

"Fine." Charlie disappeared inside.

Annick transformed in satisfaction and layed down. Her green-blue eyes glanced towards Matt in question. He was shaking his head.

Charlie ran into the common room to see Elwin, Albus Dumbledore, and the other Hogwarts Professors indulged in companionable talk. He smirked.

"Hi, Elwin," he exclaimed jauntily.

Elwin looked around.

"Hello, Charlie. Are you all back already?"

"Yea. We brought quite an interesting specimen back. Do you want to see? I don't know how long the others will hold themselves before launching on it."

"A specimen? What kind?" his eyes gleamed and he stood up. He went straight to collect his quills, ink and parchment.

"It will be better to see for yourself," Charlie smirked again. "I actually fell over when I saw it."

"Aw," gushed Elwin happily.

"Can we perhaps join you?" asked Albus.

Charlie gave a quick nod, ready to run away again. "Of course! I'll bet you never saw something like this."

Elwin hurried out, with Charlie straight at his heels, his smirk wider than ever. His task was completed; he just wanted to see his expression when he sees the 'specimen'.

**Matt's POV**

Matt waited silently sideways from Annick and tried hard not to stare at her. A hybrid like that was definitely worth the looks, despite not being real. Everyone else stared at her, trying to watch the front door at the same time. It seemed everyone had Annick for a nice person and enjoyed her shocks wholeheartedly. It seemed they accepted her immediately, along with her character.

That was the stumbling block if you asked him. They accepted her as she was without really knowing her. Maybe Charlie was right; he was too serious and thoughtful than was good for him. Anyway, he realized a couple of important truth in his lifetime: the first impression might not be the best and no one really was as they seemed.

The first impression Annick made was a lively and cheerful person, optimistic, with a little uncomfortable habit of surprising others. The problem was that such a person would love attention. Annick liked to joke and shock, but she always averted the attention to others. She used him to announce her animagus form, so the attention fell on him, too. Elwin hit the nail on the head when he said she used to stay under the radar, against all odds. She attracted attention, but everyone who ever met her remembered just her deeds, not her face. Annick was disappearing in shadows and all that was left were faceless tales.

He watched as she stretched on the ground comfortably. She made sure her clawed front paw was outstretched and her tail was turned to point forwards as well. Even after this, people would remember her form and its antics, but not the human Annick.

She never really introduced herself. Elwin introduced her as Annick. When he and Charlie introduced themselves, she answered with that word again. According to what she told Charlie, 'Annick' was a combination of a first name and a surname. Maybe she had more first names, too. The fact she didn't want to say her true name might not mean anything. She could have loads of reasons. He would never even consider it if he didn't stand right before her when she commented on George's words from the Graphorn Day.

The strange quality of her eyes disturbed him. Even now he was uncomfortable when he remembered it. The disturbance was more pronounced now, because he knew she never looked at anybody like that. That meant she wanted to hide that part of her identity. Maybe she felt ashamed of it, maybe it was too personal part of her, that didn't matter. That look might be atypical when he looked at Annick now, but it implied one thing-–a danger. That look warned and the fact it was attached to a seemingly spontaneous and happy person Matt understood as a warning by itself. He would watch Annick, because she wasn't the same as she behaved. Her name and her past didn't matter-–yet. Her acting did.

He saw Elwin bolt out of the house, almost falling over when he saw her. His eyes bulged and his chin fell low enough for his mouth to accommodate for a smaller rodent. Not that any tried to enter.

'Elwin could know more about her,' he mused, watching the elder dragon-handler approaching the dark-green lizard. Others were enjoying themselves, preparing to get to work slowly. They didn't get to study Annick's form yet. 'He knows her long enough and when he was talking about her he seemed to think her his daughter of something like that. That would mean she wasn't evil. Elwin wouldn't his protective traits on someone who was bad. However, even if she wasn't evil, she could still be dangerous.

It seems Karl was right,' he concluded, watching Elwin. He was currently gushing over her golden horns. 'I will definitely have my hands full.'


	7. Chapter 7

"Do you think that Opaleye will let us take a photo of her cubs?" asked Charlie mischievously.

They were on their way back from the trip to Annick's hybrid, which they found in a very awake mood standing in front of her cave. Every time she looked back, she spouted a little bit of fire into the cave. Karl managed to sneak sideways so he had a nice enough angle to see inside, spotting a couple of pale eggs and discovering the dragon's behaviour indeed meant protection. Annick's face expressed a strong disgust upon hearing the news.

"Doubt it, but any trip like that will have to be done without me," she said now.

"Hard luck she stuffed them into that cave. We'll have to come along every other day to make sure they haven't hatched yet," remarked Matt, grinning when he heard her disgusted sigh.

"That won't be a problem." Charlie jumped over a smaller rock elatedly.

Nat, walking in his step, took to jumping over every little rock in his way with a mad grin on his face, imitating Charlie. Annick coughed. Charlie went on, not noticing a thing.

"There are enough of us to do so and not much work to do."

"Except for that Hungarian Horntail that plucked out a couple of trees, dumping them on a Muggle road during a nice sunny day; that green beast who took a strong enough liking to a Muggle sheep farm to try to sneak down there every couple of days; and a pair of injured Vipertooth cubs. When we finally manage to heal them their mother will be barking mad already, unless she gets killed in a fight with Cannibal," Matt nodded agreeably and rolled his eyes. Charlie never saw work if there was something funny to do instead.

"I still think it's a completely stupid name for a dragon," stated Simon, glancing up from his camera for a littlest while. "Really, how can he be a cannibal if he's a Hebridean Black? Please!"

"It's still a dragon. What else do you want to call him?"

"If you were to call every dragon that attacks another one a cannibal, you'd get pretty confused, very soon," Simon frowned.

"Let's call him Idiot then," joined Annick the discussion amusedly. "He can be nothing else if he decides to anger a dragon mother."

"Remind me not to anger you when you have children, Annick," snickered Charlie.

Others bust out laughing when they imagined a "dragon mother" Annick. Only Matt, Elwin, and she weren't laughing.

Annick paled and her face twitched. Matt watched her when Charlie said that; he noticed her reaction immediately, intriguing him enough to forget laughing. Elwin quickly joined the discussion.

"Yes, Idiot would be quite fitting. Although next to none dragon species recognize the blood feud, they surely can subconsciously act on it. That Black is in trouble."

"If dragons could swear the blood feud _we_ would in real trouble," laughed Nat.

"They would need a wand to swear it the wizard's way. _That_ would be a problem. Imagine a dragon holding a wand," cut in Karl.

Everyone burst out laughing.

"Hell!" blurted Simon suddenly, pointing at the cliff before them.

They were watched by the red eyes of Chinese Fireball, which took off from the top when their laugh interrupted him.

"Damn!" hissed Annick, glancing quickly at Elwin.

The whole group stopped and prepared for the confrontation. The dragon, however, just stared at them for a while, then it nodded and flew away to the depths of the Reservation. They could only stare after it. A dragon that forego the fight?

"Was it an animagus?" ventured hesitantly Nat.

"Highly doubt that," Charlie shook his head and scratched his red hair. "That was really weird."

"Not at all. I guess it was sated and not in the mood for fighting," shrugged Elwin and gave a little laugh. "Quite nice of him. I'm not really good in fighting dragons anymore. We should better be off, before we lure another one in."

"One would think you're afraid of dragons, Elwin." nagged Annick.

* * *

Matt woke up that night to nothing in particular. His brain was quite busy when he fell asleep and it seemed to be in overdrive still. He wasn't used to having this much to stress over.

He sighed in the confines of his dark room and went through everything that happened in the last couple of days. When he really looked, he could find many signs of Annick not being who she seemed to be. Elwin knew a lot if not all. He could see that during the "dragon mother" incident yesterday. Annick's reaction offered two explanations-–she was already a mother and didn't want anyone to know that for whatever reason or she could not bare children at all. Whatever it was, Elwin knew it and took care that nobody noticed her reaction.

That wasn't the only thing he saw, though. The Chinese Fireball was the only dragon species to consciously recognize the blood feud. Funny thing they were talking about it just minutes prior to a Fireball showing up. It had the ritual it went through when beginning such a feud. It even recognized if other dragons seeked revenge. No one could be really sure, what with the beast being that far away, but Matt would swear the dragon was looking at Annick when it nodded. It was the only explanation he had as to why it left them alone. A Fireball would never interfere with the process of the blood feud.

He noticed her glance at Elwin as well as Elwin's easy explanation of the dragon's behaviour. He must have known it would react that way and tried to avert their attention. Elwin as he knew him would never be so careless about any kind of atypical dragon behaviour. Annick must have sworn a blood feud to somebody. That was the only feasible explanation he could come up with regarding the whole situation. The Fireball felt the feud, so it didn't interfere with her, and Elwin knew about it as well, so he came to her help. The real questions were why she swore the feud and to whom.

Although the children question seemed personal, too personal to be of any use in all of this, if she couldn't bare children because of what somebody else did, it technically could be a reason for a blood feud, maybe not the only reason, but reason none-the-less.

Even if she wasn't dangerous to them, the look in her eyes that shook him the day of her arrival meant she never coped with something from her past. In that case, her careless and cheerful behaviour was just a mask that she used to escape herself. And to deceive everyone else as well.

Matt got up from his bed, put on some clothes and ran down the stairs, out of the building. It wasn't the fist time he woke in the middle of the night and couldn't go back to sleep. Sometimes the other dragon-tamers were there, too. Tonight he walked the path to the lake alone with the Home silent as never before. People who didn't work the next day used to stay up long into the night, talking and playing games. Today did not look like one of those days.

Turning the corner he could see the still water in the lake, finding out he was not alone. He wasn't so sure it was a good idea to meet her here.

A lonely small woman knelt on the ground near the lake, her head bowed and unmoving. Matt approached her quietly.

"Hey, Annick."

She winced, looking back at him, but averted her head to the other side of the lake almost immediately. He thought her eyes were a little too shiny in the short moment when she looked at him, but he couldn't be sure.

"Hey, Matt, why are you up?" she asked quietly.

"I couldn't sleep anymore. It happens sometimes, though I'm usually not the only one to be up and about. It seems everyone else went to sleep already. What about you?"

"The same. I'm usually alone though," she looked at him again, but in the light of a half-moon he couldn't see her expression well.

"I can leave you to your thoughts if I'm in the way," he offered quietly, but then he changed his mind and continued. "Are you thinking about that Chinese Fireball from…" he glanced at his watch. "Yesterday, too?"

She took her time to answer. "No," she said.

"Do you?" she asked after a while, still unmoving. She was staring at him intently. He didn't need to see her face to know it. He shrugged.

"Yes, quite a bit," he sat down on the ground, just a meter or so away from her. She squirmed a little, averting her gaze.

"Why?" she breathed unwillingly.

Matt smiled a bit. She tried to behave as if nothing was amiss, but the fact that she was keeping the talk going only passively meant she was uncomfortable. Whether it was because she wanted to be alone or because of the discussed matter was yet to be seen. She behaved very differently than she did during the day, though.

"It's very intriguing it didn't attack us, you know. I don't think Elwin's right. If it was sated, it wouldn't take off in the first place. Everyone knows it's just immediate danger that makes the fully sated Fireball move."

Annick mumbled something under her breath.

"I have a theory," he continued conversationally, looking at her expectantly.

She sat stiffly, with rigid shoulders.

"Yeah?"

"Uhm, you remember how we talked about the blood feud before, don't you? Everyone knows that Fireball is the only species that is able to consciously recognize it, not necessarily in connection to itself. Maybe you noticed he seemed to nod at us before he left. Interesting, isn't it?"

"Matt--" said Annick suddenly and moved, as if going to stand up.

"It was looking at you."

She tensed.

"What?" She looked at him.

He returned her gaze steadily. Time to drop pretences.

"That Fireball was looking at you when it nodded. The others may not have noticed, but I did, as well as you and Elwin. He must know you quite well; he knows the Annick that's hiding from us all. He even knows you swore a blood feud to someone; why else would he come to your aid so quickly? Even better, that was the second saving of that day; he helped you to avoid attention during the "dragon mother" talk as well, just like you like to do."

Annick gritted her teeth and averted her eyes to look at the ground. "Matt, leave it be."

"Not yet. I just want you to know that hiding who you truly are isn't always the best thing to do. If someone notices, they might not like it. Even more if what you are hiding is anger and hate. Such feelings have to be strong and long-living to enable you to swear a blood feud, haven't they? You _definitely_ are capable of uncontrolled fury. If someone notices those feelings you can't expect them to trust you Annick." Matt finished dispassionately.

Annick winced as if he yelled or hit her.

"Matt, please... please let it be," she whispered. He just shrugged and got up.

"I didn't want to achieve anything. It doesn't matter to me that much in general," he started walking away and didn't see her wince again.


	8. Chapter 8

"Charlie, Karl, have any of you seen Annick? I can't find her!" Alejandro peeked into the Common room.

"Annick? Last I saw her she was taking off this morning," remarked Karl. "What d'you want her for?"

"I found a way to adjust the thermometer. We can measure the temperature of her flame!"

"Rotten luck. I guess she's rolling down some hill at the moment. You'll have to wait," grinned Charlie.

"Why's she always gone? I almost never see her here anymore," complained the Spanish tamer.

"Annick has an advantage in her form. Compared to us, she can manage her daily work in a while. She'll do what she's supposed to do and then she's officially free to do whatever she wants. I don't believe I've seen her on more than one meal a day. Must be her dragon self. Dragons don't need to eat often as well," shrugged Karl dryly.

"Hey, Elwin! Do you know where's Annick clawing around every day? We almost never see her any more and Alejandro wanted to measure the temperate of her flame," yelled Charlie over the room.

Two heads rose on the opposite side of the room. Elwin was analysing a number of photographs from the reservation for the past three hours with Matt.

"I don't know. She'll show up eventually. Something must be going on as she usually leaves to think. Collect your questions for her and you'll get the answers when she returns," shrugged Elwin.

"Do you know when she'll come back?"

"By evening? She knows your family is to come,Charlie," Elwin returned to his pictures.

"Elwin?" ventured Matt after a while of silent working.

"Mmm?" the old man mumbled.

"What's Annick's name?" the question came in a precisely measured casual tone.

Elwin took a breath to answer, but then he stiffened. He raised his eyes to Matt.

"If she didn't tell you, I won't."

"Thought so. I just realized she only ever said that nickname of hers, even at introductions. And don't you know why's she always leaving here? She never did before."

"You could answer that better. I don't know everything about her, Matt, regardless of whatever it is you think. I know of her life before she came here, but she's way too closed off for me to know why she's doing half the things she does, never mind what she's feeling. I only know that she started disappearing around the same time you two began to keep your distance. From that time she's even more closed off than she was before as well. If you were inclined to tell me what happened between the two of you, I would be very grateful."

Elwin kept his eyes trained on the pictures during the whole talk and Matt's mouth curled unhappily. He was right again. He thought that Elwin had a hard time trying not to tell him something. He was sure he would notice that something happened. Annick had changed since the night he encountered her at the lake. She joked less, behaved more-or-less inconspicuously, and avoided him a little. He didn't know if she suspected he'd say something to others, but she no longer played the role of a light-hearted person. Sometimes he felt her eyes on himself, but never caught her staring.

When Matt stayed silent, Elwin continued in a quieter voice.

"Whatever happened, I'd be happy if you solved it. I've never seen Annick behave as she is now and I don't like it. Ever since I've known her, she was happy and joking half the time."

"That's a mask. You've got to know that," snapped Matt. His voice gave way to a slight condemning tone and Elwin's eyes darted up to meet his.

"It is," he agreed. "However, I am happier when she's playing a game of a life she wants to live rather than see her fumbling in her reality. She had enough sadness for two lives. I don't want to see it trailing behind her."

"It's not only sadness she has lurking around her. Do try to tell me that a person who swore a blood feud isn't dangerous," Matt challenged him, staring at him sharply.

"She's not dangerous to you! Not to anyone here, unless he has a—" Elwin cut himself off, took a couple of deep breaths and continued in a calmer voice. "Is that it? You realized she isn't how she looks like and that she swore and you told her? That's why you're avoiding each other?"

"I've no idea why _she's_ avoiding _me_," retorted Matt. "_I_ am however not about to trust someone, who's got an anger and hatred boiling inside of him and who didn't cope with his past."

"Have you told her that?" countered Elwin.

"Yes!"

Elwin stared at him for a minute, then he bristled again.

"She's had enough pain for a whole lifetime! Don't you dare hurting her again! Swear to me you'll never leak it and I'll tell you who she is!"

Matt wasted no time in drawing his wand and giving the wow. He got what he wanted, even though not as painlessly as he planned. He didn't want to tell him what that night was about. It didn't matter now. He'll make his own decision on whether Annick is or isn't dangerous. Elwin couldn't back down now.

It seemed he realized it as well, just a little too late. He closed his eyes and rubbed them with his hands.

"Christ, that girl'll kill me," he opened them and looked at Matt's face tiredly. He sighed. "OK then, follow me."

He led him upstairs into his office, locking the door and making sure no one could eavesdrop before sitting down. He took a deep breath and looked over at Matt.

"Tell me, how much do you know about the war against You-Know-Who?"

"The first or the second?"

"The second."

Matt frowned. "I know that You-Know-Who rose somehow and gradually started the second war. It lasted only two years until Harry Potter defeated him in the Battle at Hogwarts. Until it happened, it was much the same is before, during the first war. People were disappearing and dying."

"Do you know which families were killed off?"

Matt shook his head. "I only know a couple of names."

"Does the name Kinnon ring a bell?"

Matt shook his head again.

"It was a Half-Blood family. He didn't manage to kill them during the first war, but everyone knew they were probably the next. He killed off the members of an Irish branch of that family—McKinnons. They were very similar to Kinnons, first generation Half-Blood as well. During the second war he sent a group of his Death Eaters to take care of them. The whole group was found dead the next day, in the same room as their victims. Artur, Marlen and their children Anabel and Mick were dead. They were tortured extensively and killed with Avada Kedavra, women raped and beaten. The Death Eaters looked like they were attacked by some sort of animal. No one knew Kinnons had a family pet and it was never found. It killed them with its claws or poisoned them with venom. Only one member of the whole family survived and he disappeared. From time to time Death Eaters were found in various places, killed in the same manner as those in the Kinnon house. You-Know-Who kept sending out his followers to finish the job. Not one of them ever returned and no one ever heard of the last Kinnon. The name of the last member is Anna Isabella Crista Kinnon."

The silence reigned for a few seconds, but Matt got it together quickly. "Annick and her Animagus."

"Indeed," Elwin didn't look like he wanted to continue talking.

"Who did she swear the blood feud to? Everyone who was after her is dead."

"Not everyone. She was attacked by Death Eaters. She swore to Death Eaters."

"But they are all in hiding!" protested Matt. "Or dead or in Azkaban."

"Not quite. The loyal ones are still trying to meet the wishes of their Lord. He wanted all the Kinnons dead. They are searching for her. If any of them finds her, he dies."

"That's why she doesn't say her name?" it was more of a statement than a question.

"Yes. Would you be so kind and leave her alone? I want her to feel as good as she can before they find her again. And don't tell anyone about her, because if she is found because of you, you will wish you never found out."

"I already swore to it," remarked Matt. "I can´t say I want to become a squib now. I've only got a hundred years left before retirement if I take you as a role model."

"Will you try to solve it with Annick? I don't really know why she's so distraught now; she usually doesn't really care about anyone at all. It seems the conflict with you threw her off a bit though."

"I'll try to talk to her. Can I tell her I know about her? Will she really kill you?"

"No," Elwin laughed. "Although she won't be happy with me, going around blabbing about her most treasured secret. But she shouldn't be very angry, she already told four other people since she's here after all."

"Who?" asked Matt, surprised.

"Not the dragon tamers. People from Hogwarts. Albus and the three Professors who accompanied him."

"Mmm," Matt got up and looked at Elwin. "Well, that being done, can we get back to our work, until the visitors get here?"


End file.
